Ben Shelton has voiced his frustration over a "stupid" rule in tennis following his recent match against Alexander Zverev during the US Open final on Sunday. Shelton was compelled to maintain a receiving posture while Zverev completed his extensive pre-serve ball-bouncing ritual, which sometimes involved up to 25 bounces before serving.

Although a 25-second shot clock is enforced for the first serve, no such limitation exists for the second serve, leading to Shelton's irritation. The 23-year-old American stated that it is unreasonable to expect players to stay in a ready position for extended periods, especially when the serve could take as long as 30 seconds.

In his post-match comments, Shelton remarked:

There’s not an athlete in the world that you’re going to watch them do their thing and they’re going to sit in a ready position for 30 seconds before the play starts. I shouldn’t have to sit at the line. If he’s bouncing the ball 20 to 25 times, I shouldn’t have to just sit there for that.

Shelton also noted that he was instructed by umpire Marijana Veljovic to get to the baseline earlier, but he maintained that he would always be ready to return Zverev's serve regardless of his routine.

In the match, Zverev, the 29-year-old top seed, secured victory with a score of 6-3, 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-2, marking his second major title of the year after winning at the French Open and ending American hopes for a home male champion since Andy Roddick in 2003.